| Royal University of Agriculture | |
| Native Name: | |
| Type: | National |
| Rector: | Prof. Dr. Ngo Bunthan |
| Head: | Khmer |
| Faculty: | 480 |
| Students: | 9,527 |
| Coor: | 50.6408°N 5.5747°W |
| Campus: | Phnom Penh |
| Affiliations: | |
The Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) is a leading public agricultural university in Cambodia. It is located in Dangkao Section, southwest Phnom Penh.[1] The university is operated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
In 1964, the Royal University of Agronomy Science (Central Khmer: សាកលវិទ្យាល័យភូមិន្ទវិទ្យាសាស្ត្រកសិកម្ម; French: Université Royale des Sciences Agronomiques) was founded by then Prince Norodom Sihanouk. It was one of the nine royal universities established to improve Cambodian higher education development. Unfortunately, it was entirely closed during the Khmer Rouge from 1975 to 1979.
In 1980, it was reopened with the new name of Institute of Agricultural Education (Central Khmer: វិទ្យាស្ថានអប់រំកសិកម្ម) to educate government staff to work in fields such as forestry, animal production, veterinary medicine, crop production, and agricultural machinery. In 1984, it became known as Institute of Agricultural Technology (Central Khmer: វិទ្យាស្ថានបច្ចេកវិទ្យាកសិកម្ម). It offered bachelor's degrees in Agronomy, Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural Engineering, Forestry and Fishery. Obtaining assistance from abroad, professors were from Soviet Union so all lectures were taught in Russian. In 1990, the support from the Soviet Union ended so the curriculum was converted to Khmer language.
In 1994, it officially changed the name to Royal University of Agriculture. After that, other bachelor's degree programs were introduced. In 2002, graduate degree programs in agricultural science-related majors were launched.
RUA is accredited by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport. RUA offers bachelor's, masters and doctorate degrees. It is a leading contributor to Cambodia's human resources in the fields of agriculture and rural development.
The Royal University of Agriculture comprises nine faculties, a school, and four research centers: